uc berkeley law school application deadline

Last Updated on July 29, 2023

Congratulations! We are happy to inform you that your application for the Master of Laws (LL.M.) program at Johns Hopkins University has been accepted. The LL.M. program is a one-year intensive study of international business law, as applied to global circumstances and needs, with one full semester in Washington, DC and another in Europe . The deadline to apply for the LL.M. executive track to start in spring 2022 is November 15 , 2021 . The deadline to apply for the LL.M. executive track to start in summer 2022 is December 18 , 2021 . The deadline to apply for the LL.M. traditional or thesis track in fall 2022 is December 18 , 2021. Now this post explores Uc Berkeley Law School Application Deadline, ucla law application fee, berkeley law early decision deadline, berkeley law opportunity scholarship and duke law school application deadline.

Berkeley Law requires that applicants submit their application online through the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) website. The LSAC is an independent, nonprofit organization that manages admissions for the majority of American law schools. 

If you do not have an LSAC account, you may register for one here. The free basic LSAC account allows you to search for law schools, view application requirements and save a list of schools and programs.

There are two basic steps to applying via LSAC:

  1. Submitting your electronic application form (includes CV, personal statement and application fee), and 
  2. Submitting your supporting documents (transcripts, recommendation letters). 

Uc Berkeley Law School Application Deadline

We begin with Uc Berkeley Law School Application Deadline, then ucla law application fee, berkeley law early decision deadline, berkeley law opportunity scholarship and duke law school application deadline.

Applying for the J.D. Degree

The Application Process to Become a First-Year Student

The application process begins when you visit the Law School Admission Council website, where you must establish an account, register for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), and submit an application, a personal statement, a resume, transcripts from all of your college or university-level schools, and 2-4 recommendation letters.

Navigate through this section of the website to learn about the steps for applying, required components, what to do after you’ve submitted an application, and to get answers to any outstanding questions.

Important J.D. Admission Dates for the 2021-2022 Application Cycle

September 1 – The J.D. application becomes available online at LSAC.org

October 1 – Review period begins

November 15 – Early decision application deadline

December 15 – Application deadline if applying for the Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship

January 31 – Latest LSAT accepted for Fall 2022 admissions

February 15 – Regular decision application deadline

April 15-June 15 – Transfer application filing period

ucla law application fee

Next, we explore ucla law application fee, berkeley law early decision deadline, berkeley law opportunity scholarship and duke law school application deadline.

Nonrefundable application fee of $75. You may submit your application and pay the fee electronically via LSAC.

University of California, Berkeley, School of Law | The Law School Admission  Council


A. APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Please note that by the time of enrollment, applicants must have a bachelor’s degree that has been awarded by an institution that is accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education. For students educated outside of the United States, the undergraduate degree must be from an institution that is equivalent in quality to that of institutions accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education. If you have any questions about educational prerequisites, please email [email protected].


All applicants for Fall 2022 should follow these application procedures:

Take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or the Graduate Records Exam (GRE) no later than January 31, 2022, if applying regular decision. Note the cut off dates for the LSAT and GRE are different for students applying to the Early Decision, Distinguished Scholars and Achievement Fellowship programs (see below). Complete information regarding the Standardized Test Requirement is below.

  1. Register with LSAC’s Credential Assembly Service (CAS).
  2. Submit the following:
    1. Completed application.
    2. Personal statement (use an electronic attachment).
      • Separate essay not to exceed two double-spaced typed pages.
      • No less than 11-point font.
      • Discuss any matters relevant to your ability to succeed in law school and the practice of law, and any attributes, experiences, or interests that would enable you to make a distinctive contribution to UCLA Law or the legal profession.
    3. Current résumé (use an electronic attachment).
    4. Two letters of recommendation (no more than two) submitted through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service are required. 
    5. Official transcripts sent directly to LSAC. Applicants should not wait for fall grades before sending transcripts to LSAC. However, applicants must submit work completed after the initial registration to LSAC, as updated reports will be forwarded to the Law School Admissions Office. Accepted applicants will be required to have their undergraduate institution submit directly to UCLA School of Law a final transcript showing the award of a baccalaureate degree before classes begin in the fall semester.
    6. Nonrefundable application fee of $75. You may submit your application and pay the fee electronically via LSAC. You may also pay by check, money order, or international money order payable to the Regents of the University of California and include it with your signed Certification Letter. 
    7. David J. Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy Application, if applying to that program.  
    8. Early Decision Program Agreement, if applying to the Binding Early Decision Program. The priority Early Decision deadline is November 15, 2021. Students applying priority Early Decision must take the LSAT or GRE by October 31, 2021. Applicants will be informed of their admissions decisions by the end of December 2021. Students applying Early Decision after November 15 must take the LSAT or GRE by January 31, 2022 and will receive decisions on a rolling basis.
    9. Distinguished Scholars Program Agreement, if applying to the Distinguished Scholars Program. The deadline is November 15, 2021 and applicants must take the LSAT or GRE no later than October 31, 2021.
    10. If applying to the Achievement Fellowship Program, applicants are required to include an additional one page essay describing in detail the obstacles they have overcome in life and why they are a strong candidate for the program. The deadline to apply to the Achievement Fellowship is December 15, 2021 and applicants must take the LSAT or the GRE no later than November 30, 2021. However, applicants taking the LSAT or GRE after these dates may still apply and be considered for any remaining Achievement Fellowships that are available.
  3. We do not require a dean’s certification.
  4. Applications must be submitted on or before February 1, 2022.

berkeley law early decision deadline

Now we consider berkeley law early decision deadline, berkeley law opportunity scholarship and duke law school application deadline.

The deadline for the early decision program is November 15. We do not accept late applications. When evaluating your GPA we will consider your overall undergraduate academic record.1 Sept 2021

Review Process and Timeline

First-year applications become available on September 1 of each year. The deadline to apply is February 15 of the following year.

The Review Process
We encourage you to complete and submit your application as early as possible. You are responsible for ensuring that your completed application reaches our office by the February 15 deadline. The deadline for the early decision program is November 15. We do not accept late applications.

Files are reviewed as they become complete. You may refer to the Faculty Policy Governing Admissions for information about the criteria used for reviewing applications. An overview of some of the main admission factors that we consider follows:

Grade Point Average
When evaluating your GPA we will consider your overall undergraduate academic record. This will include the age of the grades, exceptionally high grades, the difficulty of coursework, time commitments while attending college, grading patterns at the school attended, and grade trends or discrepancies. Graduate work will be considered a “plus factor.”

Law School Admission Test (LSAT)
When evaluating your LSAT score we will consider whether similar tests may have under-predicted your academic performance in the past. For example, if you document that you earned exceptionally high undergraduate grades but had a low SAT or ACT score, then this may be taken into account in evaluating your potential to succeed in law school. You must document your test-taking history by including a copy of your SAT or ACT scores with your application.

Personal Statement and Resume
A personal statement and resume are required of all applicants. The statement can be up to four double-spaced pages. There is no required topic for the statement. It is your opportunity to describe the subjective qualities that you will bring to the study of law at Berkeley.

The resume may be of any length. Please account for any periods of time that may be missing on your resume.  See more information here.

Letters of Recommendation
We suggest that you provide recommendations academic sources who are familiar with your classroom performance and who are able to assess your potential for the study of law. These may be from either professors or teaching assistants. If you have been away from academia, then a recommendation from a work supervisor or colleague may be substituted. We reserve the right to review your application without recommendations if waiting for them will hinder your admission chances.

If you apply as a transfer student we require recommendations from two law professors with whom you have studied.

Sign the waiver form provided in our application if you wish to waive your access to any of your recommendations. No weight is given to whether or not you waive your access when evaluating your recommendations.

Optional Socioeconomic Questionnaire
If you have experienced disadvantages that adversely affected your performance in the past, and if you have successfully overcome such disadvantages, then this information will be considered when assessing your potential to contribute to the educational process and to the legal profession. To this end, you are invited to complete the optional socioeconomic questionnaire included on the application form.  If you complete the questionnaire the information will be used to augment the other factors considered during the evaluation process.

Other Factors
Although substantial weight is given to the undergraduate GPA and LSAT score, many other factors are considered.  However, race, religion, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and national origin are not used as admission criteria. No weight is given to your political or ideological views, how you intend to use your legal education, nor to your need for financial aid during law school.

Application Status Notification
We will take no action until your application is complete. Applications are considered complete when the following items are received and processed: An application form, an application fee (or fee waiver), a CAS transcript summary, an LSAT score (the most recent one reported on your application), a resume, and a personal statement. Completion of your file may require additional action on your part, such as payment for sending a CAS report.

Once your file is complete, you will receive an email to confirm that your application is under review and instructions on how to access an online status checker to monitor your application’s progress and disposition.

Due to the large number of applications we receive, some time may elapse between your submitting an application, receipt of notification that it is under review, and a final decision. Until you receive notice that your file is under review, you should assume that it is incomplete and that no action is being taken.

If you have questions, contact us at [email protected] rather than calling the office. Inquiries other than those prompted by a special concern only delay the processing of applications.

Administrative Review
Once an application file is complete, it is evaluated on the basis of the admissions criteria by the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid. She admits a certain number of applicants who, under the governing criteria and on the basis of his experience, would have a high likelihood of admission if referred to the Admissions Committee. Similarly, applicants who would have a high likelihood of being denied if referred to the Committee are denied by the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid.

Committee Review
The remaining applicants are given more extended consideration by the Admissions Committee, which is composed of faculty and students.

The student role is consultative and the faculty members’ decisions are final. Only students who are members of the Admissions Committee are permitted to read files. You may indicate on the application form whether or not you consent to have your file read by a student member of the Committee. In the evaluation of your application, no weight is given to whether or not you consent to student review. In every case complete confidentiality of all materials is maintained.

As a result of the Committee’s consideration, some applicants are admitted, some are placed on a waiting list, and the remaining applicants are denied admission. The total number admitted is that which experience has indicated will fill the places available in the entering class. If the number of admitted students who accept an offer of admission falls below the number necessary to fill the class, then the waiting list is used to fill the remaining places.

Decision Notification
Decision notifications are sent to applicants as decisions are made. For the majority of applicants this is usually by mid-March. An admitted applicant has several weeks to respond to the offer, but in no case is an applicant required to respond before April 1. Note that the early decision process operates on a different timeline as explained on a different page within our website.

Acceptance/Seat Deposit
Berkeley Law School does not require a deposit to hold a place in our class. Instead, we rely on the honesty and integrity of each admitted student to provide a candid response about accepting our offer of admission. We believe this policy describes the essence of being a lawyer. 

Reconsideration
Once an applicant has been denied admission the decision is final. There is no reconsideration. Exceptions are made only in unusual cases in which an error for which the applicant was not responsible, and which the applicant promptly brought to the law school’s attention, may have affected the decision. Because files are considered on a comparative basis, reconsideration would lay open the possibility of unfairly granting attention to individual applicants. It is therefore avoided.

Deferment of Admission
Students are expected to enroll for the year for which they have been admitted. However, a number of deferments are available each year, and these may be granted at the discretion of the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid. Some reasons a deferment might be granted include admission to a concurrent degree program, serious illness in the family, award of a fellowship, or some other extraordinary opportunity. Deferments usually are not available after mid-July.

Contacting Applicants
Our concern for confidentiality precludes discussion of individual files with anyone other than the applicant. If you expect to be unavailable at any point during the review process, please appoint someone to act on your behalf and inform the Admissions Office via email of the appointee’s name and contact information.

berkeley law opportunity scholarship

Now we look into berkeley law opportunity scholarship and duke law school application deadline.

The Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship (BLOS) is a 3 year, full tuition scholarship for first generation college graduates. In order to apply, you must:

  • Identify as a first generation college graduate (see our definition in the How to Apply section)
  • Submit a complete admissions application by December 15, 2021
  • Have taken the LSAT (or GRE/GMAT*) no later than November 30, 2021
  • Write a 1-2 page BLOS essay with your application materials

As a premier public law school, meaningful access to a high-quality legal education is central to our core mission and values. We believe that we have a responsibility to promote access for students who are the first in their families to graduate from college and to pursue a professional degree. The Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship is a symbol of our commitment to both excellence and access. 

Furthermore, we believe that first generation individuals bring an important perspective, shaped by their personal experiences, to any setting—from the classroom to the board room. We also recognize these individuals have the potential to become law students who have a high degree of leadership potential and a strong personal commitment to making a positive impact on society. The Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship provides students with an outstanding, affordable educational opportunity.

Scholarship & Programming

Financial Support

The Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship provides recipients with funding to cover tuition and fees (including Student Health Insurance, materials fees, etc.) for three years (six semesters) of study at Berkeley Law. This is equivalent to more than $180,000 in guaranteed non-loan aid. The BLOS does not provide a stipend to cover books, computing needs, or living expenses, relocation, etc. 

“The BLOS award has served as an invaluable gift and resource to me in law school. I have always worked multiple jobs in high school and college to pay for tuition and living expenses, which made it very difficult for me to dedicate time and energy to my classes. For the first time in my life, I can solely focus on my academics and law school endeavors.”

-Xiaolin Chen ’21

Programmatic Support

We realize that there can be unique challenges when you are the first person in your family to receive a college degree and go on to attend law school. Among these are the financial pressures and demands that often distract from an academic experience. We hope this award will allay those concerns. We also recognize that at times a lack of family or other social support may complicate your introduction into the legal profession. We hope to address these barriers in meaningful ways as well.

Berkeley Law is community‐oriented. Recipients of the BLOS will have the option to participate in the First Generation Professionals (FGP) student organization. FGP was founded and is run by students with the support of faculty sponsors. 

“The organization cuts across race and gender and is born from the common needs of law students from poor and working‐class backgrounds who are often the first members of their family to obtain higher education. The First Generation Professionals student group accords with the mission of Berkeley Law as a public law school committed to promoting social mobility.”

-Professor Bertrall Ross, FGP Faculty Sponsor

 Some of FGP’s activities include:

  • Organizing events designed to support students in the development of social capital, networks, and knowledge, to help ensure that these students have the same opportunities for success as everyone.
  • Offering programs such as dinners with other first generation professional alumni, and a first generation alumni‐student mentorship match coordinated by the Career Development Office.
  • Facilitating connections for FGP students here at the law school, including offering a first generation professional buddy system that matches 2Ls and 3Ls with 1Ls, and an annual dinner at a professors’ house in which students have the opportunity to spend time with the Dean and other members of the faculty. 
  • Academic and other support in the form of exam‐taking skills training sessions, career development forums for both careers in the public sector and the private sector, and more.

In addition, recipients of the BLOS will be guaranteed a spot in Berkeley Law’s Pre‐Orientation Program, hosted by faculty before the official start of classes to ease the transition into law school. (Non‐BLOS recipients are also eligible to participate in the Pre‐Orientation program if they submit a timely application.)

“In our first BLOS dinner, I was introduced to faculty and staff that quickly became trusted advisors and career mentors. Building this support was an important goal for me in law school.”

-Rosa Hernandez ’21

There are also many social and networking events specifically for BLOS recipients. Typically, they are welcomed to campus with a “Family Dinner” that introduces them to key staff in the Career Development Office, Financial Aid, Student Services, etc. In the past, the Dean of the law school also hosted the BLOS recipients for a dinner at his or her home, along with members of the faculty. We expect these and other traditions to continue.

Finally, all Berkeley Law students have access to our on‐site psychologists, Academic Skills Program (ASP), field placements and externships, clinics, journals, Student Initiated Legal Projects, Career Development Office programming, and more.

How to Apply

Candidates must be a first generation college student in order to be considered. We consider a college student to be first generation if neither parent earned a four-year college degree (or the equivalent) or if you were raised by a single parent who did not earn a four-year college degree. 

Finalists will be chosen from all qualified applicants by a selection committee and will be invited for an interview in March. Interviews are required. The deadline to apply and submit all required materials for BLOS is December 15, 2021 and you may apply using the regular decision application or binding early decision application. Because BLOS applications are reviewed in January, the last LSAT that we will take into consideration for BLOS candidates is the November 2021 LSAT

You are required to submit a one to two page essay addressing the following prompt: How do you think being a first generation college student has shaped your perspective, and how will that perspective contribute to the Berkeley Law community and the broader legal profession? The essay can discuss content from your personal statement or diversity statement (if included), but should be a unique, independent essay specifically addressing your identity as a first generation college graduate. You may wish to discuss any obstacles you have faced on your journey to law school, contributions to your community, history of leadership or advocacy, and what kind of impact you hope to make at Berkeley Law and in the greater legal profession. The essay can be submitted at the time of your application or emailed to us at [email protected] as a PDF attachment by the December 15 deadline. 

What do we look for?

“The BLOS award not only removed financial barriers from my law school goals, but also gave me the validation I needed to know I belonged in the Berkeley Law space. I immediately connected with Berkeley Law staff and other students through the BLOS interview process, and felt supported and seen by staff throughout my 1L year, with built-in friends in my BLOS cohort. I was able to focus on public interest goals and involvements immediately in pursuit of my future career, feeling free from financial restraints to pursue my dreams and finally not having to make a decisions based on financial feasibility.”

-Maddison Pilgrim ’22

What LSAT and GPA Do You Need For Berkeley Law School?

In selecting finalists, the BLOS selection committee will read through your application materials, including personal statement, resume, letters of recommendation, optional addenda, and the required BLOS essay. In general, our committee is looking at three broad categories in selecting finalists:

  • “Distance traveled” (in the non-literal sense). How far have you come, and what obstacles have you faced, on your journey toward law school?
  • “Potential contribution” – both to the Berkeley Law community (will you be a student leader? what activities or curricular areas are you interested in? etc.) and to the legal profession in general (what do you see yourself doing with your law degree? how and where will you have an impact?).
  • “Need” in the financial and mentoring sense. How will you benefit from the BLOS? There are no actual income or asset tests, but we’re looking to provide opportunities to those with very limited resources, financial and otherwise.

Retention and Renewability

BLOS awards are renewed automatically for up to three years (six semesters). There is no GPA or class standing requirement associated with scholarship renewability. The only requirements for retaining BLOS awards are that recipients make satisfactory academic progress and remain in good standing with the law school.

duke law school application deadline

University of California, Berkeley Law | LLM GUIDE

First year students begin their study of law through the traditional core courses of civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law, property, and torts. At least one first-year course is a small section of less than 30 students and rarely does any first-year class exceed 90 students.

From the first-year foundation, Duke has built an extensive upper-class curriculum that blends traditional coursework with an extensive array of practical skills courses and clinics and opportunities to study in small groups with faculty.

While the core curriculum is strong across the board, Duke has given special attention to those areas in which there is likely to be a growing demand for lawyers over the coming decades – business and finance law, international and comparative law, constitutional and public law, and fields relating to science and technology such as intellectual property, environmental, telecommunications, biotech, and health.

Duke Law School’s Approach to COVID-19 Academic Disruption

The lives of many students have been significantly disrupted in the spring 2020 term due to the global pandemic.  Many institutions, including Duke Law, switched to a mandatory Credit/No Credit grading system.  Other institutions offered students an option to be graded on a CR/NC or similar system.  Whether you were required to take your courses on a CR/NC basis, or whether you chose to do so, please be assured that the lack of traditional letter grades for the spring 2020 term will have no negative impact on our evaluation of your application for admission.  Duke Law will continue to take into account a range of factors in making admission decisions including, but not limited to, the strength of letters of recommendation, quality of writing as demonstrated in personal statements and essays, potential for leadership, significant professional achievement or unusual extracurricular accomplishment (including school or community service), test scores, and backgrounds and experiences that would enrich Duke’s educational environment.

Non-Discrimination Policy

Duke University is committed to encouraging and sustaining a learning and work community that is free from prohibited discrimination and harassment. Review the full policy to learn more.

Application Process and Timeline

We begin accepting First-Year JD Applications through LSAC on September 1. The application deadline for Regular Decision candidates is February 15. Applications may be submitted after the deadline if space is available. Applications for the binding Early Decision option must be complete by November 5, 2021 (Round I) or January 7, 2022 (Round II).

Candidates will be notified once decisions are made on their admission applications. The time from an application’s completion to a decision being reached may vary widely.

Applicants who receive a provisional offer of admission will be officially admitted to Duke Law School when they complete the next step of the admission process – applying for financial aid and scholarship assistance. Duke Law School awards scholarships both on the basis of merit and on the basis of merit plus financial need. Candidates who wish to be considered for scholarship assistance may apply based on a combination of merit and financial need or merit only. As part of the scholarship application process, candidates will have the opportunity to participate in a Skype interview with a member of the committee, if they choose to do so. Those who apply for scholarship consideration will receive their official admission letter and financial aid decision soon after the Scholarship Committee completes its review. Applicants who are provisionally admitted and do not wish to apply for scholarship assistance may contact the Office of Admissions so that they can be officially admitted at that time.

Application Review

The application review process includes a thorough evaluation of a candidate’s academic record, including the rigor and breadth of the curriculum, overall grade trends, any graduate level work, and test scores. To be eligible for admission, an applicant must receive a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution prior to enrollment at the Law School.

Duke seeks to identify applicants who demonstrate leadership and engagement. Most successful candidates show sustained and meaningful commitment to one or more fields of interest to them. Although many applicants have had some exposure to the legal profession, this is not in itself a requirement. The Law School benefits from a student body that represents a broad range of experiences and interests. It is often helpful to indicate reasons for interest in law school in general and Duke in particular, especially when they relate to an applicant’s specific experiences. Special care is taken when evaluating applications to achieve diversity in interests, perspectives, and backgrounds.

When the admissions committee determines that additional information would be helpful in making a final decision, applicants may be invited to interview with a member of the committee. These interviews are optional, and offered by invitation at the discretion of the admissions committee. All candidates are welcome to visit the law school for a tour, and may make an appointment for a non-evaluative informational meeting with an admissions representative. 

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